Stocks stay flat in range-bound trading
KARACHI: The market remained range-bound on the last trading day before the three-day Eid holidays and the KSE-100 index closed flat with minor loss of 21.52 points (0.05 per cent) at 42,425.10.
The first public address by Prime Minister Imran Khan in which he promised to implement wide-ranging reforms turned out to be a non-event for the market as the investors’ worries centred on the action plan of fixing the deteriorating economic situation.
Although they were encouraged by political clarity, participants decided to postpone building new positions until after the holidays. Day traders were visibly active in profit-taking in the last half hour of trading.
In an economic development that came in after market closing hours, Pakistan’s current account deficit for July clocked in at $2.2billion, up 14pc - considerably higher than market’s expectations.
During the day’s trading, the index made an intraday high and low by 255 and 138 points. Market participation came down as investors await forward guidance on a road map to economic recovery.